Lessons Learned

This title would probably be appropriate for many of my posts, but I think it's especially appropriate for today's post. I'm short on time so I'll put this in list form.

1. I should always have a blanket in the back of my car.

I didn't check my calendar and I only found out at around 10AM when Patrick called me that Anthony had a JV soccer game today at 4:30PM. I wasn't dressed for being outside for an extended period of time so luckily it was in the 50s by the time I got off work to go to his game. It cooled off to the high 40s/ low 50s by the end of the game, though, and I wasn't frozen but I could have used a blanket.

2. I shouldn't wait until the last moment to get my contract requirements done.

This is an ongoing problem with me, but I have to go take Basic Life Support tomorrow because my certification expires at the end of the month. I still have a couple of weeks to go, but it's stressful especially when they changed the rules on me and I can't take the class at work anymore. I have to go somewhere else.

3. Remember the basics and be more aggressive.

Basically, Anthony learned this at the soccer game today. He only played in the last four to five minutes of the game but he learned through his teammates errors that they should remember to pass the ball and not hold onto it too long. They learned that they need to get after the ball and not just wait for it to come to them. All of these things and more are key in soccer and many other sports as well as life in general.

4. You shouldn't wait until the day before an exam to study for the exam.

Anthony has always been a good student. Frankly, school is very easy for him, despite his "Pre-advanced placement" classes. He has an Art History exam to take tomorrow and when the study guide wasn't available online like it was supposed to be (when he looked for it this weekend) he didn't email or try to contact the teacher. Instead, he waited until today to get the handout and he left other handouts with important information in them at school. Tonight we didn't get home from soccer until almost 7PM. He ate dinner and started studying. He is just now taking a shower and going to bed--it's almost midnight. He is very unhappy with himself for waiting and not studying. Patrick told me that Anthony is "stressing out" about this exam. Although he has artistic talent (when it comes to drawing), he doesn't know that much about Art itself. This is actually something that isn't easy for him. It's a new experience but we hope that he learns from this. At least he's learning the lesson now.